


Comfort

by Rossi



Category: The Sandman (Comics)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-30
Updated: 2016-07-30
Packaged: 2018-07-27 14:55:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7623067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rossi/pseuds/Rossi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>New to the role of Dream, Daniel discovers humans are harder to read than he thought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Dream/Daniel, Desire and Despair belong to Neil Gaiman and Vertigo. No profit, only homage.

It was a dream.

Nicole knew it with all that strange certainty we have whilst dreaming. This walk along a nameless street, arms wrapped John, laughing as they stumbled awkwardly… it was all a dream. The sweetness of it brought a sharp pain to her heart, and so she decided, as simple as that, to wake.

And there she was, warm and comfortable under the duvet, John's arm a reassuring weight around her waist, his bullet head tucked into her shoulder. Everything was as it should be, and she snuggled closer, making a soft satisfied noise, until the knowledge struck her once again, harder this time.

This was a dream too.

Nicole woke, _really_ woke this time, woke to the empty expanse of the double bed, her heart pounding and tears forming in the corners of her eyes. It had been so real, so right, and it made the reality all the harder to bear. John was gone, had been gone for two years now, and there was no going back to the way it had been. Nothing but the empty bed, the small flat he'd never seen, and the ache in her heart which hadn't grown less with time.

In the dark loneliness of 2 AM, Nicole wept.

***

"I don't understand."

"Humans are contrary beasts, brother dearest. I thought you'd remember that, having been one yourself."

Dream - whose name had once been Daniel - turned away from the mirror, which reflected not his hall but a small London flat in the middle of a cold winter's night, and met the tawny eyes of Desire.

"That is true, sister/brother, but I still don't understand. The dream? It was meant to make her feel better. It was what she wanted, wasn't it?"

"Yes… and no." Desire smiled languidly and blew a heart-shaped smoke ring in his/her brother's direction. "That's what makes them so pathetic, mewling after something, then deciding it wasn't what they wanted after all, slaves to their whims… This one is no different."

"Still, I didn't mean to make things worse. I only meant to give her a moment of comfort."

"My dear, you're softer than your predecessor. Listen to yourself… you actually feel for this creature!" Desire's smoky eyes gleamed briefly. "Best you take care, brother mine."

The twin stars twinkling in the depths of the darkness of Dream's eyes contracted, became as sharp as lasers, but his voice remained mild. "Wise advice, sister/brother. I hope you heed your own words."

Desire met that burning gaze for a moment, then shrugged and gave a careless laugh. "It is of no importance. Anyway, she's moved out of both our realms now. She's on our sister's hook."

Dream nodded slowly, sadly. "And for that I am sorry."

***

The next night brought another dream to Nicole. She dreamt of a castle, guarded by creatures out of legend, of a hall, huge and filled with whispering shadows, of a throne, upon which sat a man dressed in white, his hair a dandelion shock around his head, and his eyes shining like the evening stars through dusk.

"Where am I?" she asked; perhaps it was not very original, but it was a reasonable question, given the circumstances.

"You are in the realm of the Dreaming, and I am its keeper. I brought you here because I have done you a wrong, and wished to make amends."

"The King of Dreams?" Nicole shook her head, uttering a short, bitter laugh. "So you're responsible for the dreams I've been having lately. Where's John? Aren't you here to trot him out for me? Watch me squirm?"

"If that is truly your wish, yes, but I realise now that is not what you desire. I am sorry, Nicole. I meant the presence of your loved one to bring you only comfort, and instead I brought grief. Forgive me." Nicole realised with a sense of wonder that this pale king truly meant what he said… she could see the sorrow in his face, in the way his star-like eyes dulled briefly. "As compensation, I give you a gift." 

“A gift?” she asked suspiciously. “What gift would the King of Dreams have for me?”

“A dream, of course.” Mischief briefly touched the Dream King’s smile, then softened. “A love dream, to be exact. For as long as you wish, I can give you your perfect lover, something to banish the painful memory of your loss.” From the shadows surrounding the throne stepped a figure, nebulous, features shifting, waiting only for her to choose a particular form. Dream gestured, and the figure came closer, solidifying into a man, clad in a loincloth, chest muscular, arms strong, but the face still unclear. “For you,” Dream said to Nicole. “You need only take his hand and he is yours, and you will no longer be troubled by he who is gone.”

Nicole paused in the act of reaching out to touch the dream-figure.

“Never?” she asked, a shadow crossing her face. Dream nodded.

“It will be as you wish.”

“No.”

At the word, the dream dissolved into smoke. Dream raised a curious eyebrow at his human guest. “No?” he asked. “You asked me to take the dreams of John away, did you not?”

“I was angry. And hurt. But…” Nicole drew a deep shuddering breath. “But I’d much rather have that anger and hurt than nothing at all. And if I forget John, that’s what I’ll have.” She gestured emphatically. “Yes, it hurts that he’s gone, and those dreams… they were so real, they made me think he was with me again, and at first I couldn’t handle it. But he’s a part of me, and as long as I remember him, he’ll still be alive, in a way.”

“I’m not sure I understand…” Dream began, puzzled. The look Nicole gave him was one of pity.

“No, I don’t suppose you do. Anthropomorphic personifications probably don’t get much of a chance to feel human emotions, no matter the fantasies of a million teenaged girls.” She smiled. “Instead of a gift, why not a bargain?”

“A bargain? What bargain would a human make with such as I?”

“The same one I’d make with anyone.” Nicole snorted. “You began this, remember? With your apologies and compensation and all.”

“So I did. Name this bargain.”

“I refuse your gift, and in return, you let me dream of John… when I want to. You let me control what I get, okay?”

Dream frowned. “This is highly… irregular. There are rules.”

“And you’re telling me the King of Dreams can’t bend the occasional rule? Besides, this is all a dream, isn’t it? So who’s to say all this will actually have bearing in reality?” Nicole gave a small shrug. “A little comfort, that’s all I’m asking for.”

Dream considered the dreamer before him, expression more unreadable than usual. His eyes grew piercing, and Nicole squirmed slightly. 

“Very well,” he said at last. “You shall have your comfort.” He gestured, the hall, the castle, the strange dream-country she’d wandered through all collapsing around her like a house of cards. There was a sensation of falling, and then Nicole awoke with a start in her own bed.

“Just a dream,” she muttered to herself, rolling over and pulling the duvet up around her ears. The dream itself was fading, jumbled into fragments – shadows, mists, twin stars twinkling in the dusk… She put it from her mind and went back to sleep.

 

And dreamed.

From his hall, Dream of the Endless watched Nicole and her lover walking a mythical beach, and smiled. 

Comfort, yes.


End file.
